Los Angeles marijuana DUI

August 10, 2021

Federal Study: THC Levels Not Reliable Indicator of Impairment for Arrest

Measuring one’s degree of marijuana impairment has long been an interest of not only scientists, but law enforcement prosecutors and some employers. Many thought there could be a parallel to alcohol testing; but instead of measuring one’s blood-alcohol concentration they could measure the amount of THC (the primary psychoactive component of cannabis) in one’s blood. The big problem with this, of course, is that THC doesn’t behave in the body the same way alcohol does. It isn’t processed as quickly. Thus, it’s not an accurate measure of one’s degree of impairment. Los Angeles marijuana dui lawyer

This is something our Los Angeles marijuana DUI attorneys have argued for years. Now, this same conclusion was backed by a federally-funded study. Backed by a grant from the National Institute of Justice, researchers tested the THC levels of 20 individuals who either vaporized or ate varying levels of THC. They were then subjected to numerous cognitive and field sobriety tests, similar to what are used by law enforcement.

The groups that received higher doses of THC (above 5 mg) were adversely impacted in terms of their sobriety – their psychomotor skills were visibly impaired – the level of THC in their blood and other biofluids didn’t reliably reflect that. Thus, the amount of THC in one’s blood was not a good indicator of marijuana intoxication. Continue reading

April 27, 2019

Analysis: California Drivers Increasingly Testing Positive for Cannabis

By Cannabis Law Group

Although California allows marijuana to be sold, possessed and consumed by adults over age 21, our Los Angeles marijuana DUI arrest lawyers urge caution behind the wheel. Los Angeles marijuana DUI lawyer

A new study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety conducted a recent study of some 2,000 drivers in Washington state, California’s northern neighbor which also allows recreational marijuana use, and discovered approximately 14 percent of those with children in their vehicle tested positive for THC, which of course is the component of cannabis that gets users high. NBC News reported was far higher than the number who tested positive for alcohol, which was a about 0.2 percent of those with children in their vehicles.

It’s worth noting, of course, that alcohol and marijuana have two very different effects on the body, which means these figures are somewhat alarmist in nature. If it were possible to test the number of drivers who had consumed alcohol at some point in the last several days or weeks, no doubt the actual number of those would be much higher, and we’d have more of an apples-to-apples comparison. Continue reading

June 10, 2016

AAA: Per Se Limits for Marijuana DUI Not Scientific

By Cannabis Law Group

A recent study released by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety underscored what our L.A. marijuana lawyers have been saying for years: Per se limits of THC in a driver’s blood stream are not an accurate indicator of a person’s impairment level. policelights

Both proponents and opponents of greater marijuana access laws generally agree on the fact that those who are under the influence of the drug shouldn’t be operating a motor vehicle. It’s well-established that THC, the psychoactive substance in marijuana, has the potential to negatively impact driver performance (i.e., cognitive and motor abilities) and thus traffic safety. Where these two groups diverge is how we address this issue.

Understandably, lawmakers and traffic safety advocates want a solution that will keep marijuana-impaired individuals off the road. But the solution they reached is one that doesn’t make the roads safer and unfortunately may ensnare innocent people in criminal cases. Continue reading